[About the formation of volatile products during lipoxigenase-linoleic-acid reaction (author's transl)].

Soya-lipoxigenase (E.C. 1.13.1.13) is incubated by linoleic acid at room temperature; the arising volatile products are isolated by different methods, concentrated, and investigated by means of gas chromatography. If the non-volatile hydroperoxides, formed during the incubation are also injected, 15-20% are decomposed to volatile products superposing the primarily enzymatically formed volatile components as artefacts and consequently falsifying the result. Without separating the linoleic acid hydroperoxides (LHPO) the quantitative proportion Hexanal/Decadienal is approximately in accordance with the proportion 13-linoleic acid hydroperoxide/9-linoleic acid hydroperoxide (this means for soya-lipoxigenase and pH 7 about 1:1). After separating the linoleic acid hydroperoxides only these volatile products are found which are arising during the lipoxigenase reaction. These are 1-2% in relation to the LHPO. In this case, the quantitative ratio Hexanal/Decadienal is not corresponding to the 13-/9-linoleic acid hydroperoxide proportion. Nearly the only product formed by this process is Hexanal.